How to improve my listening so I can pass a C1 DALF listening section

Ask specific questions about your target languages. Beginner questions welcome!
Sarafina
Green Belt
Posts: 373
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2017 6:02 pm
Languages: English (N)
French (Intermediate )
Japanese (Beginner)
Yoruba (Advanced Comprehension)
x 912

Re: How to improve my listening so I can pass a C1 DALF listening section

Postby Sarafina » Mon Feb 25, 2019 7:37 pm

Update
Even though in my plan I was meant to do more intensive listening activities and more transcriptions, I ended up doing more extensive listening instead by watching random episodes of mainly animated TV series and French YouTubers and background listening to French podcasts like FranceCulture or Arteradio. I don't know if it was the most effective way to improve my listening skills to do but there was a noticeable improvement in my listening comprehensionm.

When I first wrote the initial post, my listening was frankly at best B1. I remember watching Daredevil and having to watch half the episode with either French subtitles to even understand what was being said and I even found watching Caillou to be a challenge at times.

Funny enough, I never went back to finishing Daredevil in French. I started rewatching it and it's truly incredible how much I now understand now. I'm baffled how I found it to be difficult to understand in the first place. I can follow it now with no difficulty and no need for subtitles. I remember watching Squeezie and I used to wonder if it would be possible to even get to that level when I can understand what he is saying without sub titles. Now I can watch his videos with almost the same ease as I would watch English-speaking YouTuber.

My listening comprehension isn't perfect. There are still words that I miss out on and struggle to understand especially when I watch French movies. But today I listened to a mock C2 listening extract available on YouTube and I actually understood what was going on. Obviously this doesn't mean that I would even pass the C2 or even C1 listening exam if I sat it right now- far from it. But I remember listening to C2 listening extract online two years ago and being completely lost. I'm happy with how much I improved and how it's transformed from an area of weakness in being one of my strongest skills. But I still have plenty more areas of weakness when it comes to my French that I need to work urgently.

I'm so grateful for the generous advice that I've received. Thank you so much.
12 x

Cavesa
Black Belt - 4th Dan
Posts: 4960
Joined: Mon Jul 20, 2015 9:46 am
Languages: Czech (N), French (C2) English (C1), Italian (C1), Spanish, German (C1)
x 17566

Re: How to improve my listening so I can pass a C1 DALF listening section

Postby Cavesa » Tue Feb 26, 2019 12:10 pm

Congratulations on your progress! It sounds great!

Extensive listening is awesome, it just requires time, and it seems to be working well for you. It sounds like you've found a varied menu to devour. (btw, I'd be very interested in tips on good French youtubers)

I'm baffled how I found it to be difficult to understand in the first place. I can follow it now with no difficulty and no need for subtitles.

Yes, this is what it's supposed to work like :-) "Suddenly", you are much better! Baffling, isn't it? :-D

My listening comprehension isn't perfect. There are still words that I miss out on and struggle to understand especially when I watch French movies. But today I listened to a mock C2 listening extract available on YouTube and I actually understood what was going on. Obviously this doesn't mean that I would even pass the C2 or even C1 listening exam if I sat it right now- far from it. But I remember listening to C2 listening extract online two years ago and being completely lost.

It's ok not to be perfect, you are improving. DALF C2 listening felt easier than hard tv series, from my experience. You haven't reached the level of very hard tv series yet (at least you haven't mentioned trying), but you are on the way there.

It sounds to me that you've broken through the first few walls and it will be just easier from now on, as you have the whole francophone world to choose from at this level. It will be more and more fun.

It's heart-warming to hear of you progressing so nicely!
6 x

munyag
Yellow Belt
Posts: 68
Joined: Tue Jul 09, 2019 4:22 pm
Languages: Shona (N), Spanish (Beginner), French (Beginner)
x 62

Re: How to improve my listening so I can pass a C1 DALF listening section

Postby munyag » Sat Nov 18, 2023 5:49 am

Ani wrote:
For the OP, I didn't read everything carefully so sorry if I missed this, but did you say what your level estimate was for other aspects of the language? I was just going to throw in a reminder to keep pushing along in grammar and vocabulary from a written perspective. It's pretty hard to have C1 listening comprehension if you have ~B1 level of vocabulary, kwim?

Could you go back and add quote tags to this section of my post from your post? It gets a little confusing without them.

Sarafina wrote:In terms of reading, I can comfortably sit a B2 reading paper and expect to pass. When I looked at the C1 reading paper, the texts there was reasonably accessible and understandable. If I watch TV series like Daredevil with French subtitles then I have no problem understanding it but when I watch it without any subtitles then I'm lost like 40% of the time. The problem is that I am unable to hear the words when spoken due to lack of French audio input. I heavily focused on reading French texts and rarely ever listened to much French hence the massive disparity.

So it seems that you have attributed the problem to lack of audio input, but are you sure? Are you sure that it isn't misrepresenting phonemes in your head so that what your expect is not what you get? A phonology course could go a long way in that case.
B2 reading/B1 listening doesn't seem like a massive disparity to me at all.


Hi Ani
Sorry to reply five years later. I have been reading OPs posts and I guess the misrepresentation of the phonemes makes sense l. OP admitted that during the beginning of her French journey; the teachers at school did not fully teach them pronunciation. I think at B1/B2 level OP was trying to rectify the pronunciation issues but OP had by then got to the point where she was having full fledged conversations in French with a noticeable thick accent (Her words not mine). I think we are blessed with the Internet and resources and all but Small white and a few others thought OP might have been impatient or perfectionist and spreading herself with too many resources
1 x

Granrey
Yellow Belt
Posts: 65
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2023 3:15 pm
Languages: spanish, English
x 103

Re: How to improve my listening so I can pass a C1 DALF listening section

Postby Granrey » Mon Dec 04, 2023 3:08 pm

This is a very interesting tread.

Its unfortunate in a way that spoken french and written french seem to be so substancially different and how much effort books and training are put into written french and given the confusing imprension to students that spoken french is the same as written french.

Based on posts it seems the general advice is when you are at level B1-B2 is to watch tv series. Now, where the advice tends to defer is in how to do that. subs, no subs, subs on which language, wathing in your language first, language reactor, etc.

Just curious if someone can give more opinions on this.
0 x


Return to “Practical Questions and Advice”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: jackb and 2 guests